Outlaw Swordsman

The Outlaw Swordsman is a character found in The Hook and The Great Desert. Outlaw Swordsmen are characterized by a civilian appearance, exclusively wearing wooden sandals, halfpants, white vests, and straw hats. However, they (unlike their accompanying Outlaw Farmers) also come outfitted with a heart protector. They are always equipped with a horse chopper (and no sidearm), which is guaranteed to be rusted. In the Kenshi universe, these characters are forced to pick off those unfortunate for food and other possessions, outcast from Imperial society due to their poverty/homelessness (which is literally illegal in United Cities territory). They might express brief reluctance to fight you out of sorrow, but nonetheless will attack on sight (associating you with being just as bad as those in power that cast them out into the world).

Despite being more favorably equip than their Farmer counterpart, the Swordsman will typically see less longevity in the battlefield. Their attributes vary from a lowly 4 to impressive 24 (with a +1 effect from their straw hat, and the negative attack penalty of a horse chopper). The area-of-affect damage of a horse chopper, albeit less than that of a staff, can also mean serious trouble for a highly-concentrated fight. Their horse choppers also inflict a decent amount of cutting damage, which could result in bleed outs (if the Farmers don't knock you out with the blunt damage of their staves). They are almost always accompanied by a group of Outlaw Farmers.